After surviving a serious injury in November, Mikaela Shiffrin remains determined to return to the Winter Olympics in 2026 and she’s hoping for a podium finish. However, the 30-year-old ski champion shared in a recent interview with PEOPLE that she’ll have to compete without the physical presence of her fiancé, fellow skier Aleksander Aamodt Kilde.
Shiffrin, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, explained that the layout of the upcoming Games will keep them apart. The men’s and women’s skiing events are slated to take place on different mountains, with around six hours of travel time between Bormio and Cortina in Italy.
“We probably won’t see each other at all during the Olympics,” Shiffrin admitted. “We’ll be racing in separate locations—Bormio for the men and Cortina for the women.
Still, the couple is no stranger to long-distance cheering. “We’re used to being apart during competitions,” she said. “When it’s go time, you’re busy and locked in. We keep in touch over calls. We’re kind of like ships passing in the night.”
Earlier this year, Shiffrin made a stunning comeback, claiming her 100th World Cup win just months after a crash in Vermont that left her with a punctured abdomen.
She and Kilde, who went public with their relationship at the 2021 ESPY Awards, got engaged in April 2024. Both have battled injuries recently Kilde suffered a devastating crash in Switzerland in January 2024, putting them both in what Shiffrin called “survival mode.”
“Long distance is tough,” she said, “but he makes it work.” As they both eye the 2026 Olympics, she’s hoping their hard work pays off. “It would mean the world to see him race again especially at the Olympics.”
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